Being from the Midwest, and Wisconsin specifically, you are taught to not only be a Packer fan but accept them as a birth rite. Before I became an owner of the Green and Gold, I fitted them neatly into my wedding vows as a priority to the construct of my marriage. Whenever Saori feels I’m not pulling my weight in our holy matrimony she’ll dig them up, and I get to read my promises all over again.
Alas, this isn’t just about vows, my wife, or marriage, but it is about the Packers. To the point, it’s about the Vince Lombardi era Packers. Even deeper still, it’s about Vince Lombardi, the leader, himself.
When Lombardi was hired to coach Green Bay, most people had to pull out a map to see exactly where the smallest city to hold a professional team was, and he was no different. From the 20s through the 40s, Green Bay was incredibly successful but had fallen into disrepair after the retirement of Curly Lambeau.
The season before Lombardi picked up the job, Green Bay had only one victory all year. Lombardi was a man with options, he was the previous offensive coordinator for the New York Giants with a guy called Tom Landry as the defensive coordinator. He could have taken his talents to an established franchise, but he decided to be hired by the worst team in the league and drag his family into literally parts unknown.
History may have taken a different path had Lombardi ended up somewhere else, but I am certain that the mark of a leader’s effectiveness is not where he starts his journey, but rather where it finishes. The first season with Lombardi as head coach he turned the defunct Packers into a winning team. The second season, he lost the championship game. His third season was his first championship, and he paired his fourth season with another crown. Then from 1965-1967, three seasons, he was on top of the NFL again, to include the first two Super Bowls.
Although I believe that leadership is universal, I cannot say that leaders can call themselves good if they start at the top. Coach Lombardi didn’t. He had the star dust within him to produce winning teams, but he did not have the luxury of walking into a well-oiled machine. It did not happen overnight either; it took years to win his first championship.
In your own endeavor, remember that you have to start somewhere, and the further buried you are, the sweeter the victory. Who knows, perhaps they’ll bestow the namesake of a trophy in your honor at the end of the day. Do not be disturbed how bad it is when you arrive and think of it as an opportunity to showcase your talents. When an organization is that lost, you might be surprised who they rally around, and it could be you. So be brave, know what you are about, and lead your team.
Written by Calvin W. Rastall